


The Manner of Things

by BayleyWinchester



Category: Greek and Roman Mythology, The Song of Achilles - Madeline Miller
Genre: Achilles/Patroclus-centric, Action/Adventure, Adventure, Adventure & Romance, Alternate Universe - Creatures & Monsters, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Comedy, Crack, Crack Treated Seriously, Dimension Travel, Established Relationship, F/M, Fantasy, M/M, Magic, POV Alternating, Patroclus-centric, Romance, Swearing, achilles-centric
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-21
Updated: 2019-09-01
Packaged: 2020-01-23 02:18:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,515
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18540298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BayleyWinchester/pseuds/BayleyWinchester
Summary: Achilles and Patroclus had been perfectly happy laying in bed together that afternoon. But they had gone to Menelaus' house, just like all their other friends, when called. Then suddenly doors were glowing blue and opening into worlds that they couldn't even imagine.In a world in which magic isn't real, no one could be prepared for Menelaus asking them to help find his brother. Who had disappeared into a new, and somewhat terrifying, world.Achilles knew he should have stayed in bed.~~~“He’s there,” Menelaus pointed to an ‘X’ on the map.“X marks the spot? Really?” Odysseus muttered. “At least be original.”Menelaus shouldered the bag and grabbed Helen’s hand. “Thank you guys for coming with me.”“You didn’t give us a choice,” Achilles replied.





	1. This is why I don't socialize

**Author's Note:**

> Yay! New Achilles and Patroclus fic! An adventure/fantasy styled one at that. 
> 
> (Magic isn't commonplace in this world, Agamemnon is odd for knowing about it. The others aren't magical.)

When the text came through Achilles were perfectly content. He had a dozing Patroclus laying across his chest and a funny movie on his TV. The text came through on his phone and then a moment later Patroclus’ phone buzzed as well. Achilles groaned when Patroclus sat up, Patroclus rolling his eyes at his over the top boyfriend. While his chest was free Achilles reached for his phone as well. May as well see what was happening.

“I think Menelaus is high,” Patroclus said before Achilles had the chance to read his messages. 

“Wouldn’t be surprised,” Achilles replied absentmindedly as he read what was happening in the group chat. Messages were flying in from the boy in question. Nothing really made sense, something about a book and some painted walls and his brother not being home. A few question marks from Odysseus and one ‘WTF’ from Diomedes were there but aside from that, it was just Menelaus sending a steady stream of messages with far too many capital letters. 

“Helen just messaged me. She’s really worried,” Patroclus showed the paragraph length message sent to him. “Apparently Agamemnon has disappeared.” 

“Oh no,” Achilles replied flatly. Patroclus threw a pillow at his boyfriend. “Oh come on, guys a freak.”

Patroclus sent Achilles a look of disbelief, “and he’s missing. We can’t be rude about him.” 

“He tried to curse me!”

“You told him he was a freak!”

“Because he is!”

“Well, yeah, but you don’t say that to people’s faces.”

Achilles shrugged, “doesn’t matter. He’s gone now.” At Patroclus’ furious face he raised his hands in surrender and muttered an apology. On their phones Menelaus had stopped texting them so rapidly, leaving Helen to ask them all to go to his house and get there as quick as they could. “We’re going, aren’t we?” 

“Menelaus is our friend.”

“Yeah, but I was so comfortable.”

“I’m going, you can come if you want.” 

Getting up, Achilles pulled on a shirt. “You can’t even drive, how did you expect to get there?”

“I knew you would come with me,” Patroclus grinned up at Achilles from the bed. 

“Devious,” Achilles lent down to kiss Patroclus. “I like it.” 

~~~

When they arrived Menelaus’ house Odysseus was just pulling up with Diomedes and Penelope in tow. Big Ajax’s car was also parked in the driveway meaning, most likely that both Ajaxs were inside already. Through the window, Menelaus pacing across his living room was very clear. The five that had just arrived joined up to walk to the front door, which was had already swung open. A very stressed looking Helen standing in the doorway. She hurried them into the living room where the Ajax’s were sitting silently, watching Menelaus. 

“Thank you for coming,” Helen muttered after Penelope hugged her. “I have no idea what to do.”

“What’s happening?” Achilles asked, still annoyed that he wasn’t on his bed with Patroclus on his chest. Anywhere but here really. “The group chat wasn’t exactly helpful.” 

Helen ran a hand through her hair. “I honestly don’t know.”

“I do,” Menelaus said. “He’s insane and he actually did it. I can’t believe him.”

“Did what?” Patroclus asked as he and Achilles sat on an armchair. The others, including Menelaus, followed suit and in a moment everyone was sitting down. The room was uncomfortably quiet as they all waited for Menelaus to speak. 

“Okay, so you guys know that my brother is into some weird shit. Like, magic and hexes and wizards?” Menelaus started and everyone nodded. Everyone knew Agamemnon was into some weird things, he didn’t try to hide it. Menelaus nodded, tapping a leather bound book that was resting on his knee. “So, that shit was like his passion. It was all he did. But he was always talking about a door, a door that he could make that lead somewhere else. Like, another planet or dimension or something.”

Diomedes nodded seriously, “like Monsters Inc.”

“What the fuck?” Odysseus shook his head, hitting his friend on the shoulder. “Shut up.”

“Yeah, anyway. He wanted to find the key to the door or some shit so he could leave and go to a place filled with magic. He said the old gods lived there.”

“Dude, no offence, but your brother is a complete wacko,” Achilles said. Patroclus shoved his boyfriends’ shoulder with his own but didn’t say anything to him. 

Standing, Menelaus nodded. “Yeah, I never really understood what he was talking about.” 

“So what’s the huge problem?” Achilles asked.

“He’s missing.”

“Did he run away early last year?” Penelope asked, “and he came back.”

Helen nodded, “he did but he left a note and was only gone for a night. He’s been missing since Friday.”

“And it’s Sunday,” Menelaus groaned. “He’s been missing for two days.”

“Call the police,” big Ajax said. 

Little Ajax nodded, “what are we going to do?”

Menelaus sighed, looking to the book and back. “I can’t explain it. Just follow me.” All of them stood, following their friend into his back garden and down the path to the shed at the bottom of their property. Patroclus was always slightly jealous of Menelaus’. His shed was nicer than Patroclus’ whole house. Almost the same size as well. A small creek ran alongside it, eels swimming down it with fish occasionally coming to the surface. Menelaus pushed open the door, stepping inside. It wasn’t anything to write home about inside but it was nicer than an average tool shed. An old looking armchair in one corner, a large bookcase stuffed with books in the other. One wall had a desk covered in papers pushed against it with a mini fridge and some drawers beside it. The oddest thing were the walls, seeing as they were absolutely covered in drawings and maps and symbols Patroclus had never seen. 

“This is his, I don’t know, magic house. He’s always out here, working on stuff. We’re not allowed in.” 

“I am,” Helen muttered.

“So this is, what, the crime scene?” Achilles said, “we shouldn’t be in here.” 

“No, Miami Vice, it’s not,” Menelaus replied tightly, stepping around Diomedes to stand by the door. He pushed it closed and turned on the light. Which was blue. It also lit up the doorway, showing all the symbols painted on the door and around the doorway. In the middle of the door was a big red hand that Patroclus really hoped was paint. Menelaus held up the book he was holding, the pages covered in the same type of symbols as the door. “Last Friday I came out to call him in for dinner but he wasn’t here. Sometimes he wonders so I figured he’d come back. But he hasn’t yet and I am freaking out. He’s a freak but he’s my brother.”

Everyone bar Menelaus looked at each other uneasily. Achilles was the one to speak up, “so do you think it - worked?”

“Yes!”

“Sorry to break it to you,” Odysseus said, “but magic isn't real.” 

“That’s what I thought but this is weird.”

“People go missing all the time,” Odysseus continued.

Helen sighed, “can you show them what you showed me?”

“Right. So I was here early looking for clues when I found this.”

“A map,” Patroclus said when Menelaus held up the piece of paper. Menelaus shook his head. “An old map?” Patroclus tried again. Menelaus looked offended. “A map with family value?”

Achilles looked at his boyfriend, “what are you talking about?”

“Magic, apparently.” 

“Patroclus gets it,” Menelaus sighed. “Thank you. It’s a map of the world Agamemnon was looking for.” 

“The place that doesn’t exist,” Odysseus said.

“Helen, this is what convinced you?” Penelope muttered. 

“I guess. I don’t think Menelaus is lying about this.”

Little Ajax nodded with raised eyebrows. “So what do you want from us?”

“We have to find him,” Menelaus replied as if that was obvious.

“Yeah,” Achilles said. “Let’s call the cops and let them sort it out.”

“If I figure out how to open the door then we can go and save my brother.”

“You sound like Agamemnon,” Diomedes said. “And that’s not a good thing just so you know.”

Menelaus ignored him, instead turning to the desk. He searched as everyone stood in silence for a few moments before he produced a new piece of paper. Pushing past everyone, which was rather hard seeing as they were all pretty close together because of the size of the room. He got to the door and started tracing random symbols with a sharpie. Everyone watched in a sort of confused discomfort. As he traced the room dropped in temperature, prompting Achilles to hand his jacket to Patroclus who had started rubbing his arms. After a few more minutes Menelaus stood back, looking from the door to the paper to the book and back again. No one moved. They were waiting for something to happen, either the door would open into a magic world or Menelaus would fully lose it and start fully muttering in a corner. Either was fine. 

It didn’t take long for one of the larger symbols by the door handle, an upside down semicircle with a cross in the middle, to start glowing gold. Achilles and Patroclus looked at each other, neither knowing what to say to that. The chain of symbols around the door frame started glowing hot red a moment later. Menelaus swore loudly before drawing another symbol, a snowman looking thing - without the hat or arms - right under the handprint. That also glowed, blue this time. Menelaus nodded and then the symbols on the doorframe were glowing gold. 

“What the fuck is happening?” Diomedes muttered as everyone stared. 

“Glow in the dark paint,” Odysseus replied with way too much confidence in his voice. 

Achilles stepped closer to Patroclus, almost so that he was in front of his boyfriend and closer to the door. Patroclus couldn’t say he minded. Glowing doors was a little too much for him to handle, to be honest. Achilles knew that, knew that his boyfriend wasn’t liking this by his stance alone and being protective was an inbuilt thing with him. Patroclus found Achilles’ hand and joined him to his. Achilles squeezed back in reply as they continued to watch the door as more symbols started to glow gold. One by one the symbols followed suit and glowed. It was becoming so bright that it was hard to look at. 

Once all the symbols were glowing smoke started seeping in through the cracks. Diomedes shook his head, “nope. This fucking sucks and I am going home.”

“You can’t touch the door until it’s finished.”

“Or what?”

“I think you turn to dust?”

“What the fuck, Menelaus?! Glowing doors and Thanosing it. I hate you.”

As Menelaus went to reply the glowing stopped. So suddenly that the room felt like it was plunged into darkness. The light above them flicked on and off for a bit before changing from blue to gold. Everyone held their breath. It was so silent that you could hear the faintest of noises. Which is why everyone freaked the fuck out when something, something big, walked past the door they were all staring at. Menelaus placed the book and the map in a satchel like bag that was sitting by the door before turning to face everyone. 

“We-” he hesitated. “We’re not. I think we made it.”

“What the fuck,” Helen said, wide-eyed staring at her boyfriend. “Menelaus what did you just do?” 

“Took us to-”

“You say anything like ‘Magic Land’ and I am punching you,” Achilles threatened. 

Menelaus shook his head, “the place my brother was looking for.”

“Your map place?” Patroclus asked. Menelaus nodded and Achilles groaned. 

“This,” Achilles said turning to Patroclus, “is why I don’t socialize.” 

“This exact situation?” Diomedes teased. 

Achilles glared at his friend, “no.” 

“We don’t even know where we are,” Helen said.

Odysseus rolled his eyes. “We’re in Menelaus’ back garden.” 

Without warning, Menelaus turned the handle and pushed the door open. They were not in Menelaus’ back garden. The normal rich-person gated-community garden they had just been in had turned into a forest. An actual forest. A forest filled with trees so tall the tops were hazy and hard to see and knee-high fog so thick you couldn’t see the floor. Bright, neon bright, flowers with tall, black, stems sprouted in random places and some kind of animal was chirping loudly nearby. The doorway itself was situated in a small clearing, devoid of mist and neon flowers but covered in sprouts of plants that were bright red in colour and about ankle high. No one moved from the shed. 

“Where the fuck are we?” Diomedes asked after a while. 

“No idea,” Penelope muttered looking more and more distressed the longer she looked out at the image in front of them. Odysseus rubbed her back.

Above them was a sound, almost like an owl but ten times as loud, before a giant dark-grey shape was flying around in the airspace. It was high up and it was huge. No one wanted to see how big it was when it landed. “What the actual hell,” Patroclus muttered. 

“That doesn’t matter right now,” Menelaus interrupted. “We’re here and we can’t get out without finding my brother.”

“Why not?” Big Ajax asked.

“Don’t know how,” Menelaus shrugged, not even looking apologetic. 

Patroclus had to tighten his hand in Achilles’ so that his boyfriend didn’t start a fight. “And how,” Achilles asked, “do you know your brother is even here. Where ever here is?” 

“He’s there,” Menelaus pointed to an ‘X’ on the map. 

“X marks the spot? Really?” Odysseus muttered. “At least be original.”

Menelaus shouldered the bag and grabbed Helen’s hand. “Thank you guys for coming with me.”

“You didn’t give us a choice,” Achilles replied, screwing up his face. 

“Yeah,” Menelaus nodded. He, along with Helen, stepped out first. The others following suit and walking into the clearing. No one wanted to be left alone in the shed. Which was a good thing, seeing as the moment Diomedes stepped out there was a loud hissing sound and the house shimmered before disappearing entirely. It was hard to find words so no one spoke when it happened. In the clearing the little red plants started swaying as purple hand size bee-like insects flew around, occasionally bumping into a flower and making a grunting noise. 

“I don’t like this, Menelaus,” Penelope said as they stood there. “Truly.”

“Neither do I,” Diomedes muttered. 

Something moved in the forest, the vines hanging between the trees were pushed around as the creature circled the clearing. Somebody squeaked and everyone moved closer to one another. A huddle in the middle of the clearing. There was a loud roar that rocked the ground and all the bee-things flew up and away, the red plants closing their petals and going closer to the ground. Menelaus brought out the map as the creature grew closer. It was close enough to smell, it’s goat like scent causing people to screw up their faces. 

“If we go that way,” Menelaus said pointing to his left and away from the creature, “we should get to a waterfall.”

“And if we don’t?” Helen asked. 

“We’ll figure that out when we get there, or don’t get there,” Menelaus replied. And with that, they were off.


	2. I’m Really Trying Here, Okay

Achilles was walking, with Patroclus, at the back of everyone else. He had his arm around his boyfriend and sunglasses on the edge of his nose. Even though the trees blocked the sun it was unnaturally bright in the forest. Diomedes, who was walking in front of them, pushed another branch out of his way, which flicked back and hit Achilles, barely missing Patroclus. “I am going to kill him, I swear to God. Menelaus as well.” 

“Don’t be so dramatic.”

“I’m not.” 

“This could be fun, we’re in a -”

“You can’t even say what we’re in because it makes zero sense.”

Patroclus rolled his eyes, “would you rather they all came here without us?”

“Yes.”

“That’s a load of shit. You love this.”

“Until one of us dies.”

“We’re not going to die.”

Achilles nodded, instantly going back on his statement, “yeah I’m not about to let either of die.”

“Thanks, Achilles,” Diomedes butted in. “I feel safer already.” That got him a punch in the shoulder, nowhere near as hard as Achilles would have liked. 

They had been walking for about twenty moments now, the forest hadn’t changed all that much as they moved through it. The mist was starting to clear, their feet now murky but visible which meant fewer people tripping over exposed roots. Neon flowers were also becoming more common, nearly everywhere now, and occasionally something lizard-like scurried across the floor. The large owl-sounding creature had circled above them for only a second before leaving their sight. 

Another branch hit Achilles and he went to yell when Diomedes stopped. They had come to a large clearing, about the size of a football field. The clearing was devoid of fog but there was a line of fog around the tree line as if there was a transparent barrier the fog couldn’t pass. There were no flower and the bark like flooring of the trees was replaced with ankle high grass. In the middle of the said clearing was a perfectly square pond, big enough to lie down in. When they stepped out of the tree line a small animal, only the size of a cat, that was dark green with three heads and three legs turned and ran into the trees. The group moved forward. 

Menelaus sat down on the grass just a few steps into the clearing, Helen beside him, and pulled out the map and the book, spreading it out in front of him. Achilles, pulling Patroclus, sat down opposite him. Everyone else followed suit, so they were sitting in a circle with the map in the middle. The map was something otherworldly as well. It was a light beige A3 piece of fabric looking paper with black and gold writing and drawings on it. The bottom left corner was filled with forest, a few clearings here and there. The top left was all water, a castle in the middle of it and a lot of sea monster warnings. The bottom right was mountains and villages, which meant people lived in this world. Something no one had thought about. The top right, where the ‘X’ lay dead centre, was nothing. No warnings, no drawings, just an ‘X’. That was probably the most terrifying part. 

“Okay,” Menelaus pointed to a clearing in the forest corner. “We’re here.”

“How do you know?” Achilles asked.

“We came through this portal,” Menelaus answered, moving his finger to cover a small purple circle. 

Odysseus, who was leaning back on his hands, scoffed. “This is all such bull.”

“What?” Diomedes said, looking over at his friend. 

“This is ridiculous. We’re not in some magical land.” 

“So you think this is - what?” Diomedes asked, 

Everyone was staring at Odysseus now, mostly in confusion but there were also a few annoyed and condescending looks - mostly from Achilles - thrown in there as well. How could anyone look around, look at where they were, and not come up with magic as the answer. They had come through a portal for Christ sakes, how was he going to explain that one away? It was baffling, to say the least. Odysseus shrugged and nodded, looking up at the sky which was slowly turning orange as the sunset. He spoke, again, with far too much confidence for his situation. “I mean, magic isn’t real. We’re probably just all tripping right now. Mass hysteria is a thing, pretty common actually. Like the people the danced till they died in France.”

“I’m not in a shared delusion,” Penelope replied. 

“You wouldn’t know if you were or not.”

“I think you are high,” big Ajax said. “But we’re not.”

“So Menelaus drugging us all is less likely than magic?” 

Menelaus looked up at this, offence written across his face. “I didn’t drug you.”

“Mass hysteria then.”

Achilles shook his head, “shut up. Menelaus what are we doing next? Sun’s going down and I don’t want to be out here when it’s dark.” 

“No, you don’t.” A whisper echoed around them. At the voice, everyone turned to find the new person in the conversation. It was not any easier to explain. Rising out of the pond was a girl, maybe 12, with floor length black hair clinging to her and a flowing white dress that seemed to float around her. Her skin was so pale that she seemed to be almost see through. She was smiling but her jet black eyes were blank. Once she was out of the pond her hair turned, almost instantly, to a brilliant shade of bright blue and the dress turned grey. “It can be dangerous out here when the sun’s protection has left for the night.”

By the time she had finished talking everyone was standing, staring at her. It was Patroclus who spoke first. “Who are you?” 

“What are you?” Achilles corrected.

She tilted her head, her smile growing to show far too many large, very pointed, teeth. “My name is Alanis. I live here and you do not.”

“No, we don’t,” Diomedes nodded. 

“You don’t know the danger you’re in.”

“What danger?” Helen asked, stepping closer to Menelaus.

Alanis blinked very slowly. “You are extremely beautiful. He will like it.”

“Who?” Menelaus gritted out. People hitting on Helen always got on his nerves but this was something else. Almost threatening. 

“Go that way,” Alanis pointed to the opposite end of the clearing. “Tower. You will find a place to rest for the night.” When no one moved she stepped closer, lowering her voice. “Fear invites copies of itself. It would do you all good to remember that.” 

The pond behind her started bubbling, ‘Alanis’ being called out in a much deeper tone. She stepped back, once, twice, three steps so her feet wherein the water. Her hair went back to black and her dress white. She blinked again. ‘Alanis’ was still echoing around the clearing as she spoke again. “Go that way travellers. And remember that emotions invite copies of themselves. You will need that when you need that.” And then she was gone. The pond stopped bubbling and the echoing ceased as soon as Alanis was submerged in the water. 

“What the fuck was that?” Little Ajax asked after a moment of stunned silence.

“You will need that when you need that,” Diomedes scoffed. “What kind of bullshit advice is that.” 

“Yeah, bullshit advice, but the sun is going down and she said we’ll find a place to rest that way,” Achilles pointed in the general direction. “So we should get going.” 

They walked for about five minutes, following Alanis’ directions. It led them to a stone tower, maybe two stories high with a wood door and no windows. Everyone stopped walking when they saw it which lead to everyone standing in front of it, just staring at it. There was a noise behind them as if someone was walking through the trees, and everyone took a step closer to the tower. Trying their best to get away from the noise. “Are we going to go inside?” Big Ajax asked, “I feel like we should.” 

“Are we sure this where Alanis meant though?” Little Ajax asked, mispronouncing Alanis’ name. 

“I think it is,” Menelaus replied. 

“She did say tower,” Achilles agreed. 

Odysseus was the first to step forward. He knocked on the door and when nothing happened he pushed it. It swung open, creaking as it did so. Odysseus walked in, Penelope following and then everyone trailing after her. Inside was empty, no furniture, no second story and when the door closed, no light. Achilles, luckily, found a torch and had a lighter in his pocket so he was able to bring light to the room. 

“I thought you quit smoking,” Helen said when she saw what he had used.

Patroclus sighed, “yeah. We’re working on it.” 

Once there was light people started relaxing. The tower wasn’t big by any means. In fact, when people sat down they couldn’t help but touch others. Patroclus ended up in between Achilles’ legs and Penelope on Odysseus’ lap just so there was enough floor room for everyone to sit. The torch sat in the middle of the floor, lighting everywhere. It only took a few minutes for everyone, bar Achilles and Menelaus, was asleep. The Ajax’s and Diomedes were in some weird dog pile and the couples were cuddled up together. 

“Do you have a plan?” Achilles asked, running his hand over Patroclus’ head. 

“Just, we go there, get my brother back and go home.” 

“What if he doesn’t want to come back?”

Menelaus shook his head, “he will. I’ll talk to him.” 

“This is just like Frozen.”

“Why do you know the plot of Frozen well enough to use in comparisons?” 

“It was on TV the other night so Pat and I watched it,” Achilles shrugged. “What about all these fucking, things. What if they’re not all as kind as what’s her name?” 

“We can figure it out,” Menelaus replied. Achilles sighed, not very happy with the answer but too tired to argue about it. He rearranged Patroclus, like Menelaus was doing with Helen, so they were both comfortable. And then the two of them were laying down, ready to sleep. “We will figure it out.”

“I hope so.”

~~~

They all woke up to a knocking on the door. Everyone looked at the door, to each other, and then back to the door. There was sunlight peeking in through the cracks in the door but aside from that, there was nothing different in the tower. Menelaus picked up his bag, stuffing the map into it. Another knock sounded, this one louder than the last, and a long raspy wail echoed from inside. The fear in the room was almost visible as they all stood next to each other, as far away from the door as they could get. 

“What do we do?” Penelope whispered. 

No one had the chance to answer her, however, because the door opened. Standing in the doorway was a man. Nothing to suggest he was anything other than a regular human just like them. It was almost more disconcerting to see him and not some kind of magical creature standing there. In his hands was a large sword, which was pointing at them as they stood opposite him. His eyes swept over them all before going to Achilles and Patroclus, who were standing dead centre of the group. Neither of them were one to back away from a fight so they stared right back.

The man in the doorway laughed, or at least, it looked like it. Throwing his head back he produced no laughter but his body shook. When he looked at them again his eyes seemed darker. He went back to staring at Achilles and Patroclus, his sword pointing directly at them now. He opened his mouth, showing his pointed teeth, but when he spoke it sounded like it came from behind them. Achilles had to fight the urge to look behind him and he was sure some of his friends did. “You are children. Defenceless children. I will eat you.”

“You’ve got to fight us first,” Achilles replied, not breaking eye contact. Inside he was panicking. Challenging this man - thing? - to a fight probably wasn’t the smartest idea out there. He was just hoping that he looked composed to everyone else. The man-thing included. Confidence was key here. Patroclus gripped his hand harder. The man tilted his head, looking at Achilles in amusement. 

“Where is your weapon?” This time he didn’t open his mouth to speak. 

“Lost it.”

“I will give you one. Then we will fight. Then I will eat.”

“I’ll win.”

Again, he threw his back but no sound came out. Achilles’ jaw clenched but he didn’t say anything. When he stopped laughing he pointed past Achilles, past his friends. “Bring the weapon out. I eat when the Elder comes over.” And then he turned and walked out of the tower. 

Achilles turned around, lo and behold, buried in the wall was a sword. He had to stifle a groan. Nearly all of the blade was actually in the wall, pushed in between stones, only the hilt and handle visible. “You’re really going to fight him, it, that thing?” Diomedes asked. Achilles shrugged as if to say ‘why not?’. Diomedes turned to the sword and tried to pull it out. “It’s not moving.”

“What do you mean?” Patroclus asked.

Diomedes pulled at the sword again, clearly straining. When it didn’t move he stopped and stepped back raising his hands in surrender. “Pull harder,” Menelaus said. 

He did, pulling as hard as he could. “Just pull it,” Odysseus muttered. 

“I’m really trying here, okay? Maybe you’d like to give it a try,” he flipped Odysseus off before muttering; “fucking sword.”

Big Ajax, who was next closest, stepped up and tried. He pulled as hard as he could, even going as far as to place his feet on the wall and pull like that. Nothing was working. Little Ajax had his go, getting them no closer to having a sword. Achilles tried next, and even he couldn’t do anything. Although he almost snapped the blade in half, so he was asked to not try anymore. Helen groaned, “what, is this some kind of King Arthur thing?” 

“Looks like,” Penelope sighed. “I swear to god Menelaus if I die because of this.”

“Move the stone.” Everyone looked at Patroclus and he shrugged, “the sword can’t come out so move the stones.”

“How?” Odysseus asked. 

Everyone stepped back and Patroclus walked to the wall, observing it for a moment before putting his fingers beside each side of the blade and pulled at the stone beside the sword. It moved a little, more than before, so he tried again. One more time and the sword clattered out and fell onto the floor. Achilles picked it up and dusted it off, grinning at Patroclus, “my boyfriend’s so smart.” 

“Yeah, yeah, you're both really cute. Hashtag couple goals. Now, do you want to go out and fight this dude? Thing? Whatever,” big Ajax said, gesturing to the door. Achilles nodded and they all filled out of the door, Achilles (who was swinging the sword around, trying to get the hang of it) first. 

The man was leaning against a tree opposite the door to the tower. When they walked out he pushed himself up. Everyone bar Achilles stood beside the tower, Achilles walked forward as the man was doing. Without moving his mouth the man spoke, his voice sending a shiver up Achilles’ spine. It was if his voice was made of ice. “You got the blade, I am impressed. Not many people can.”

“It wasn’t that hard,” Achilles said nonchalantly. Taking credit for his boyfriends work, he’d apologize after the battle. 

“This is harder,” the man replied readying his own sword.

“We’ll see.” 

As soon as the man moved Achilles moved. He had never even held a sword before but he couldn’t let his opponent know that. Confidence was key. Achilles watched for a bit, ducking out of the way of the other sword but making no effort to swing. He needed to see how to swing it before he could. After a few minutes, he felt comfortable trying it out, and the man seemed annoyed which would hopefully aid Achilles. The first two swings of Achilles were blocked easily, which honestly pissed Achilles off. He needed to win this. He watched for a few more moments. Then he saw his chance. The man would raise his sword in the air before bringing it down. But when he did that the sword hovered in the air for a few, precious, seconds. 

When the man did that move again Achilles took his chance, hitting the man in the side as hard as he could. It didn’t send him down but it faulted him enough that Achilles was able to bring his sword back and hit him in the thigh. Dodging a sloppy blow from the man Achilles hit him in the thigh again, and the man fell to one knee. As if he was proposing. He tried to jab Achilles, but he was to slow and Achilles was to fast. By the time he was ready to swing again Achilles was bringing his own sword down onto the man’s head. Jumping back Achilles watched as the man fell forward, blue blood flowing from all the injuries. He was dead before he even hit the ground. 

Patroclus was beside him in a second, gripping his arm and running his worried gaze over his body. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Didn’t even touch me,” Achilles promised, leaning down for a kiss that Patroclus was very happy to comply with. 

“Dude, I had no idea that you knew how to fight,” Diomedes said after they had broken apart.

“Neither did I.”

“What?”

Achilles shrugged, “first time for everything, right?”

“I hate you,” Menelaus muttered, very clearly jealous. “We should go, we don’t want to waste sunlight.”

“Lead on,” Achilles said, gesturing with his new sword. He was definitely going to keep this.


	3. The First Time I Kinda Believed

The group walked for about ten minutes before Menelaus stopped, cursed, and shook the map. He turned around, finger tracing patterns over the map as he did so. Everyone else watched him silently. Finally, he stopped moving, squatting down with another curse and letting the map drop beside him. Helen rubbed his shoulder, sending their friends a confused look. “Menelaus, what’s going on?”

“I think we’re walking the wrong way.”

“What!” Achilles said as Odysseus picked up the map. Him and Penelope going over it. 

“We were on the right track but I think Alanis changed our course. We were supposed to go the other way.”

“I can’t believe it,” Achilles muttered, walking to lean on a tree and pulling his hand over his face. Patroclus smiled weakly at him. “So what do we do? Turn around and walk back the way we came?” 

Penelope nodded, “it looks like it’s the only way.”

“Alright,” Diomedes nodded although he didn’t look happy with the situation at hand. No one did. “We go back.”

With very little complaining the group literally turned around and started walking again. This time Odysseus and Penelope in the lead. They made their way back to the tower, the body of the man Achilles had bested was gone, no one wanted to think where it went, and then they made their way back to the clearing with the lake. Alanis didn’t make an appearance this time. Menelaus made everyone stop when they got their, just to check the map and make sure it was working. 

They all agreed they were doing the right thing by going the other way. The problem was, however, the sun was now pretty high in the sky. They’d wasted nearly half the day on walking the wrong way. No one wanted to spend another night in this land, they wanted to go home. So the idea that they had wasted time was very, very, disheartening to all of them. But there was nothing they could do. They had to soldier on and find Agamemnon. 

“Okay,” Helen said about an hour after they had left the clearing. “Not to make this situation way worse but I am really hungry.”

“Yeah, I didn’t want to say anything but,” Big Ajax agreed. 

Menelaus nodded, “I can find us something to eat. It’s in the book.”

“Does anyone have food?” Odysseus asked as everyone ignored that point raised by Menelaus. 

“I do,” Patroclus said reaching into this - Achilles’ - jacket. He pulled out four granola bars. 

“Those are mine,” Achilles groaned as Patroclus handed them out, ignoring Achilles complaining as he did so. They continued walking as they ate their bars. Everyone got just under half a bar, which wasn’t all that helpful but it was something. As they ate and walked the owl sounding creature flew overhead, causing the rest of the forest to fall silent. And a snake with three heads had stared at Achilles before slithering back into the trees. 

“Wait, why did you have four granola bars in your jacket?” Little Ajax asked as they walked.

Achilles shrugged, “in case I get hungry.” 

“Stop, everyone stop walking,” Menelaus called suddenly. “Don’t move.”

“What’s going on?” Diomedes asked. 

Instead of answering Menelaus continued reading through the book in his hands. “Achilles, to your left, what’s there?” Achilles looked, having to pull back some vines to see it before calling back the answer. “Fuck, would you say the rock structure is a triangle shape? With a hole in the middle?” Menelaus asked and Achilles nodded. Menelaus cursed again, reading quicker than before. 

“Menelaus, what’s going on?” Helen asked softly but firmly. 

“Just, I read something about this part of the woods. I don’t remember but there was something about holes in the ground and -” he never finished his sentence because as quick as a blink he, Helen and Diomedes were gone. The ground had opened up where they were standing and had closed just as quickly. No one moved for a moment, shock clear on everyone’s faces. Achilles was the first to react. Dropping to the ground he pressed his ear to the floor.

“What are you doing?” Odysseus asked. 

“Shut up,” Achilles replied. “I can hear them.”

Patroclus dropped to the ground beside his boyfriend, “are they under there?” 

“We’re here!” Diomedes called back, his voice sounding echoey. “What the hell just happened?”

“I think it was a witch,” Menelaus replied.

Odysseus, who was now also kneeling, scoffed. “Don’t be so stupid.” 

“They were just swallowed by solid ground and you’re still scoffing.” 

“Yeah.”

“Okay,” Menelaus interrupted. “You guys need to keep heading the way we were going, I think we can get out at the next pile of rocks. We’ll meet you there.”

Big Ajax looked around. “Okay, but which way were we going?” 

“Follow the sunset,” Menelaus replied, his voice starting to fade. “To the next pile of rocks, alright? We’ll see you there and don’t forget -” 

“Oh good,” Achilles said, standing. “This is what I wanted to happen.”

No one responded for a minute, too busy thinking in their own minds to reply. Penelope looked to the sky, “I guess we go.” She, Odysseus and the two Ajax’s started walking, leaving Achilles and Patroclus alone for the moment. The former wrapped his arms around the latter with a sigh. Achilles kissed the top of Patroclus’ head before the two of them set off after their friends, who were only a few steps ahead of them. 

Just as they caught up to their friends there was a loud bang and a cloud of smoke enveloped all of them. As they coughed, the smoke burning their lungs, the waved it out of their faces. Luckily everyone was still there when the smoke had cleared. Unlikely there was also someone else. She looked like every single cartoon witch they had ever seen. Black rag dress, pointy hat, hunched over, evil neon green eyes. All she was missing was the broomstick. Achilles pointed his sword at her but she just laughed, shaking her head at him.

She raised one hand, cupping it and twirling it before sticking one finger out. The ground under her, Achilles and Patroclus opened. Leaving them in a free fall that landed, oddly, in a clearing. Their friends nowhere to be seen. Achilles kept the sword pointed at her and none of them spoke. Eyeing the others up silently instead. She took a step towards them and Achilles swung his sword, only to be pushed back, flying through the air to hit a tree. He heard Patroclus call his name and then the witch was holding him by the throat, suspended in the air. 

Achilles couldn’t move. No matter how hard he tried he just couldn’t move. It was like the tree was holding him back. He was forced to watch as the witch whispered something to Patroclus as she held him, his face turning red. Achilles felt sick. He pulled as hard as he could but he just couldn’t move. She continued talking to Patroclus, whispering to him. When he started turning purple Achilles broke free of the hold. Pushing himself off the tree and racing to Patroclus. 

By the time he had made it across the clearing, the witch had dropped Patroclus into a heap on the ground. Achilles didn’t care about hurting her as much as he did helping Patroclus so he ignored her watching them from the tree line. Instead, he helped his boyfriend into a sitting position and rubbed his back while he coughed and gasped. Achilles felt rage flow through him like blood. When Patroclus was breathing and his skin colour back to normal, he turned to confront her but there was no one watching them. 

“It’s okay,” Patroclus muttered, rubbing at his neck. “She didn’t mean anything.” 

“What? She tried to kill you.”

“No, she didn’t. Come on, I’ll explain it to you while we walk.”

“You sure you’re okay to walk?”

Patroclus smiled at him, “promise.” 

~~~

Meanwhile, Menelaus was having a really hard time not punching his best friend in the throat. His girlfriend looked like she was about to start swinging as well. Diomedes, the best friend in question, didn’t seem to realise just how close he was to getting tag-teamed by the two of them. Helen shifted her glare to Menelaus as if Diomedes signing was his fault, Menelaus shrugged hopelessly. She then tripped and reached out to clutch at his arm, almost painfully. He was about to tell her to let go when he looked down; she looked so scared in the dark light that he couldn’t say anything. Instead, he covered her hand with his own. Smiling at her. 

“Gross root, gross tree root, gross root touching me - ew what the fuck was that. I am going to die and it is all Menelaus’ fault.” 

“Do you really wanted those to be your last words?” Menelaus asked.

“Yes,” Diomedes replied trying to look his friend in the eye. 

The only problem? It was really dark where they were. See, they were truly underground. A tunnel. Which was bad enough on its own but the fact that there were lit torches every few hundred meters? It was worse simply because it meant there were people down there. Or people like things anyway. And for some reason, they had placed the torches far enough apart that for a good portion of the tunnel it was almost pitch black before a light came into the distance. Tree roots were everywhere; hanging down, sticking out of the wall, underfoot. It made walking that much harder. And it was hard enough. But the group pressed on. There wasn’t much else they could do to be fair. 

“Hey, Menelaus?”

“Yes?” 

“Did you ever tell Helen about the time we-”

“I can assure you, I didn’t.”

Helen was having none of that, turning back to look at Diomedes. “Please continue.”

“Happily. It was about a week after you two became official, Paris was still chasing you ‘cause he thought you two weren’t serious. Menelaus here made all of us promise that if he started a fight we had to back him up.”

“That’s actually kind of sweet.”

“I am sweet.”

“Yeah and then about three seconds later Paris and his goons burst in and we all had to fucking fight. He had already started the fight. Jackass.” 

Menelaus was about to speak when all the torches went out with a gust of window, leaving the entire tunnel dark. Almost instantly he had four hands clutching at him. Helen he could deal with, but a panicking Diomedes? That was another story. However, because he was a great friend thank you very much, didn’t push his friend off. He would, however, tell everyone about this because he wasn’t an amazing friend. But, first, they had to deal with this. He rearranged them so that Diomedes was holding Helen’s hand who was holding his hand. 

Diomedes was not as happy as Helen with this arrangement. 

“Okay,” Menelaus said. “Don’t let go of each other’s hands. Diomedes, keep your spare hand to the wall. You’ve got to run it along because our way out of here is going to be a hole. I’ll do my wall. We can do this.”

“You’re going to do a wall?” 

“Nice, Helen.”

“Thanks.”

Fighting back a sigh, Menelaus started walking down the tunnel. Helen and Diomedes keeping up with him. As much as he loved the both of them - his girlfriend and his best friend - they could be a lot of work. Especially his best friend. At least they got along, though, he didn’t know what he would do if they didn’t. The group continued walking, occasionally Helen would squeeze his hand and he would squeeze back. He felt rather special that she did until he realized that she was doing it to Diomedes as well. Their plan worked well enough though, for a while anyway. 

In a blink of the eye, the entire tunnel was lit up. Almost too bright to see and it took them a moment to adjust. It was like fluorescent hospital lights had been turned on. It got worse though, seeing as in front of them was a never-ending line of - somethings. They were about three free tall, furry and brown. They stood on two legs with a tail sweeping the floor and they had four arms, two on each side. Their faces were dog-like, a snout and two beady green eyes with snake-pupils. 

“What the fuckkkkkkkkkk,” Diomedes muttered. All the things(?) turned to look at him, causing him to recoil. “What do we do?”

Helen, in an apparent Lara Croft moment, ripped a tree root out of the wall. “We swing.”

“What the fuckkkkkkkkkk,” Diomedes repeated.

“Let’s fucking go!” Helen yelled before sprinting at the creatures, swinging without abandon. “Get a stick and swing boys, we gotta find that hole!” 

Diomedes and Menelaus looked at each for a moment before following her suit. Yelling and hitting, also there was a bit of swearing. Helen was in beast mode, leading the charge but the boys were hardly slacking. The most unsettling part was the screaming coming from the creatures. For all, they knew they were friendly, well until one bit Menelaus’ arm. Which Diomedes proceed to punch off. The creatures seemed never-ending, but luckily one hit seemed to take them out. Not many were running after them. 

They were swinging and hitting and running for about five minutes when Helen skidded to a stop. “Is that the hole?” She yelled to her boyfriend, pointing to a double bed sized hole in the tunnel wall. “Is that it!?”

“I think so?” Menelaus said. “I can’t look at my map.”

“You know what?” Diomedes said, “I think that’s a better option.” 

The three of them ducked into the hole at the same time, falling down instead of being able to climb up. All of them were panicking and screaming. This wasn’t right. They wanted to go up! The thought of going even further down terrified them all. They had had enough of the underground. But, because some cosmic fucker was laughing at them, they ended up on the solid ground, staring up and the sun. And up at their friends. 

“I never thought I would be happy to see you, Achilles,” Diomedes said, waving his stick around. 

“Fuck you.”

“You know what?” Odysseus said. “I think I’m starting to believe in all this.” 

“Fuck you.”


	4. Yeah, we’re all special in our own unique way, blah blah.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why haven't I updated in nearly 3 months? That's a good question and one I can't answer. Here's the next chapter!

“So,” Diomedes asked after quite a while of everyone sitting silently. “What the fuck just happened? Because we were just attacked by feral teddy bears.”

“Patroclus was choked out by a witch,” Achilles replied. 

“What the fuck,” big Ajax looked to Patroclus like it was his fault the witch had grabbed his throat. All of them were sitting in a clearing not far from the pile of rocks. The sun was practically gone and according to Menelaus, there was no actual shelter near them. The Ajaxs had collected some wood so they weren’t freezing and Menelaus had found some kind of vegetable that he claimed they could cook and eat. So far nothing had gone wrong and it tasted really good. 

“She was angry we were here,” Patroclus shrugged. 

Ajax raised an eyebrow, “that doesn’t explain why she choked you.”

“Anger issues?” 

That answer seemed to placate him seeing as Ajax didn’t ask any more questions. Achilles, who was drawing on the ground with the point of his sword, asked; “what do we do now?”

“Sleep,” Menelaus replied, “and then keep going.”

“We’ve been here for two days already,” Diomedes muttered. 

“The faster we find Agamemnon the faster we get to go home.”

Achilles rested the handle of the sword against his thigh. “How far away from the X are we now?”

“Closer.”

“Thanks, dumbass.”

“Be nice,” Patroclus muttered. Achilles scowled but listened anyway. The group sat quietly for a while, each in their own mind. Because of the coverage of trees, the sky was a vibrant orange for a brief moment before darkness spread over them. Luckily they had the fire, which helped bring some light to the area. And a little bit of warmth as well, not enough, but it was better than nothing. All of them were thinking about their bedrooms. If they were home Patroclus and Achilles would be cuddled up on their bed, probably listening to music or watching movies. Not in the middle of the forest. 

Once the sky was black little Ajax spoke up, “you had to fight feral teddy bears?” 

Diomedes perked up, “yes! We were in the tunnel, right? And it was light enough that we could just see but still pretty dark -”

“Yeah, he got scared and held my hand at one point.”

“Shut up Menelaus, and that was only because suddenly all the lights go out, right? So we’re standing there, pitch black, and scared as hell because what the fuck? Right? Anyway, suddenly it’s fucking bright as shit. Like, almost too bright. But that’s not the worst part because standing right in front of us are these little teddy bear things. Like, knee height maybe.”

“Fucking feral things,” Helen interrupted. 

Nodding, Diomedes continued. “A mix between a dog, a rabid fox and a teddy bear. But with snake eyes. But then it gets really good because Helen got her bad bitch on.”

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome. And she rips this tree root out of the wall, boss move, and starts whacking these little fuckers.”

“They sounded like small children when they screamed,” Menelaus said. He just shrugged at all the horrified stares. 

Diomedes, who was now acting out the swinging motion, continued. “We just kept going and going until we ended up at a hole in the wall. We jumped in and ended up on you guys. It was insane.”

“You jumped into a hole in a wall, underground,” Odysseus repeated, “and ended up two feet over us, above ground?” 

“Insane,” Diomedes nodded. “So what about you guys? Pat got choked out by a, what I’m hoping was a sexy, witch. Anything else?” 

“The witch wasn’t sexy,” big Ajax answered. “She was fucking ugly.”

“And she can probably hear us,” Achilles muttered causing Ajax to go pale and look around the clearing nervously. “She appeared in a cloud of smoke and took Patroclus and me to a small field. Pinned me to a tree and lifted him. She left and we found the others. Nothing else.”

Menelaus and Diomedes turned to each other and both spoke at the same time; “sounds like a porno.” Helen hit them both in the shoulders. 

“What did she say?” Odysseus asked. “You never said.”

“Uh, she asked who we all are and where we’re from. I couldn’t answer because she was crushing my vocal cords. I guess she can read minds or something because she seemed to get an answer,” he shrugged. “Then she asked what I was doing and why Achilles had a sword. I didn’t hear the next bit well because I was trying not to die but she basically said we weren’t welcome here. But, she said the forest is the worst place and the sooner we get out of here the better.”

“That’s all?” Penelope asked when no one else spoke.

Patroclus nodded. “Well, no. After she stopped choking me she said that Achilles and I have, and I quote; a strong, glowing and vibrant bond that the biggest pair of shears couldn’t break.”

“Sweet in a weird way,” Helen pursed her lips. “I’d like our relationship to be described.” 

“I’m sure the witch would describe your relationship that way,” Penelope replied. Helen smiled at her from across the clearing. “So, I guess our best bet is getting out of the forest as quickly as possible if the witch is telling the truth.”

“You’re right,” Diomedes nodded, “but I’m not ashamed to admit I don’t want to walk through the forest in the middle of the night. It’s fucking terrifying in the day time.”

No one seemed to disagree. Ajax threw another log onto the fire. Menelaus, who was sitting close to the fire to keep cooking the vegetables, jumped back when a flame licked at his arm. Ajax threw him an apologetic look. “So, I guess we should go to sleep. We want to be leaving at first light tomorrow. But, because we’re in the open, should we have a guard or something?” 

“We can take turns,” Achilles agreed. “A few hours each.”

“Count me out, I need my beauty sleep,” Diomedes replied. 

Achilles rolled his eyes, “shut up. I’ll take first watch.”

“Why you?” Little Ajax asked.

“Not tired.”

Diomedes looked between him and Patroclus, who was sitting in between Achilles’ legs, with a raised eyebrow. “Don’t run off to have couple time and leave us to die. I will come back and I will haunt you.”

“No such thing as ghosts,” Odyessus muttered as he and Penelope got ready to sleep. 

“That’s what you think, goddamn shaniac,” Diomedes replied. “Achilles, keep cooking these fucking roots ‘cause they are nice as fuck.”

“Are you incapable of not swearing when you talk?” Helen asked. Diomedes shrugged, paused and then nodded. She just laughed and pulled Menelaus over to her. Menelaus and her were cuddled up on the floor for a moment before Diomedes was spooning Helen as well. Everyone else watched as Menelaus grunted but ended up not pushing him off his girlfriend. Helen looked very happy with the arrangement. 

A few minutes later and everyone else was also laying down and falling asleep. Bar Patroclus and Achilles, who had moved to sit closer to the fire. Achilles turned the stick holding the roots before turning to Patroclus. They moved closer together, cuddled right up to each other. Barely an inch of space between them. “Are you okay?” Patroclus asked after a few minutes of calm silence.

“Yeah, of course. Why?” 

“You’ve asked me if I’m okay but you never talk about yourself. I’m worried.”

“I’m fine, I promise.”

“Achilles.”

Rolling his eyes, Achilles shrugged, jostling Patroclus. It took him a moment to answer the question, however. “It’s a lot to take in, I know that. And it’s scary and I have no idea what’s happening. But we have to get over it or else we’re all going to go crazy and when we get back we’ll end up in a padded cell muttering about roots, feral bears and witches. Everyone’s going to think we’re insane.” 

“I wonder if they’ve noticed we’ve gone.”

“Dad would have if he was at home. I’m sure one of the other parents will say something.” 

“Won’t be mine.”

Achilles shrugged, “your dad’s a piece of shit.”

“Yeah, and now you’re his daddy,” Diomedes muttered. “Can you two shut up, please? I need my beauty sleep” 

~~~

“Rise and shine mother fuckers.”

“I hate you so much.”

“You love me.”

Everyone else ignored Diomedes and Menelaus as they got ready for the rest of the day. It was going to be a long, and probably filled with unpredictable disasters like the other days had been. Achilles was messing around with his sword while Helen packed up the food and Odysseus went over the map with Penelope. According to them, they would be leaving the forest today. If nothing else happened. They also said they were heading in a diagonal path, so hopefully, they’d be able to bypass the sea filled with monsters and villages filled with who knows what. 

“Okay, is everyone ready?” Helen called, standing. “Alright then, let’s go.” 

They set off, following Odysseus and Penelope instead of Menelaus this time. No one seemed upset at this switch. Odysseus and Penelope weren’t known for being the smartest couple in school for nothing. For about half an hour they walked without incident, talking amongst themselves. They could pretend, if only for that small window of time, that they were back home and had just gone on a hike. 

Until something went wrong because of course, something went wrong. They were in the middle of a lot of trees. There was practically no space in between each tree and the floor was covered with uncovered roots. Because of yesterday, the group stuck close together the entire time, which lead to a lot of tripping, bumping into others and almost pushing people down a steep hill. A howl sounded in the distance, they looked around but didn’t stop, until the howl was a hell of a lot closer to them. 

All of them stopped walking then. They were standing close to each other, packed as tightly as the trees around them. In front of them, there was a scurrying type of sound, which went right around them. Another howl. Achilles had his sword straight out in front of him, ready to start swinging. Menelaus whispered at them to stay still and to stay silent. All of them did what they were told. None of them were about to risk it. For a few moments it seemed like the creature had gone, everyone was about to breathe a sigh of relief, before the vines before them parted. 

Standing before them was some kind of animal. At first glance, it looked like a wolf, just way bigger. Taller than a horse and thicker than an ox. Its teeth, which it bared at them with a loud snarl, were as long as a hand and looked sharper than Achilles’ sword. Its eyes were large oval-like shapes, pitch black and wide open. It snarled again, stepping closer to the group. Which wasn’t great seeing as they were already too close for comfort. Achilles, who was behind stepped out in front. Patroclus’ eyes were as wide as the wolf’s as he watched his boyfriend. 

Before anything could happen however another figure came into the area. It looked like a child. A young girl, almost like Alanis. But a lot more normal looking. It was as if any normal middle schooler had just walked into the clearing. It was even more disconcerting, not knowing if she was some kind of creature as well. What she was capable of. Achilles readied his sword but the girl held her hand, the wolf sat down but Achilles didn’t relax. The wolf was still right there. 

“Yo, girl, you’re pet is awful,” Diomedes said, getting a whole lot of shushes in reply.

“He’s not my pet.”

“My bad.”

The girl smiled, “I feed him some food once, when he was a pup, and he listens to me now.”

“Nice,” Helen smiled at her. “That sounds lovely. Could you please ask your, uh, friend here to let us past? We’re-”

“I know what you’re doing here. You’re looking for Aganemomn, aren’t you?” 

Menelaus stepped closer, ignoring the wolf growling lowly. “You know my brother?”

“I know of your brother.”

“Where is he?”

“Why would I know that?” 

“You said you knew him!” 

She shook her head, “I know him from our world, Menelaus, I know all of you.”

That caught everyone’s attention. It was Helen who asked, “you’re from, from our world?” 

“Yes, I found this place like your brother did. I’ve been coming here ever since. It’s such a wonderful place.”

“I don’t know,” Diomedes muttered, “guess we’ve caught it on a bad day.” 

“You’ve had some run-ins. I’m surprised you survived Alanis, she must like you.”

“That’s not the vibe we got,” little Ajax replied. 

She laughed, “how are you all alive right now?”

“I’m running on spite and fury,” Menelaus replied.

“Alanis isn’t kind. Usually, she just kills the people who come to her clearing. Didn’t you see the pile of bones?” 

“If we had seen them we wouldn’t have gone into the clearing,” big Ajax replied. 

“Fair enough,” she nodded. The wolf lay down, causing the ground to vibrate a little. Achilles still hadn’t relaxed, the arm holding his sword tense. The girl, who apparently went to school with them which wasn’t expected, rubbed behind the wolf’s ears. The wolf stopped growling as much, acting like any dog would when getting a scratch. “I am sure that you want to get to your brother as soon as possible. I wish I could help you out more but all I can tell you is you’re going the right way.” 

“And how do you know?” Achilles asked, trying to keep his tone neutral. “Because no offence but you’re like nine and don’t live here.” 

The girl pointed behind her, “I’ve been coming here for a long time. A clan has adopted me, when I’m here. They tell me things.”

“Like what?” Odysseus asked. “Because anything would be helpful.” 

“That you’re not safe, that you’re here for your brother and you can’t leave until you find him, that some of you are special.”

“Yeah, we’re all special in our own unique way, blah blah,” Diomedes muttered. “We know.” 

“There’s two of you that are, are more special than the others. People will remember your names more than anyone else's.” 

Achilles sighed, “goody. That’s really helpful.” 

“Listen to me carefully,” the girl stepped closer and lowered her voice. The wolf looked even angrier. “This place isn’t all it seems to be. There are people, powerful people, who will do anything to stay powerful. All of you threaten that.”

“Great,” Penelope muttered. “Awesome. That’s what I wanted to hear.”

“Keep going the way you’re going and you end up where you need to be,” the girl said. She clicked her fingers and within a moment she and the wolf were nowhere in sight. 

“Well that was fun,” Menelaus said. “Shall we?”

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you think :)


End file.
